


Little Boy Blue and the Man in the Moon

by Galactic_Enantiomers



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: A fine balance of angst (mostly not between Rey and Ben) and fluff (definitely between Rey and Ben), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate ending where Ben lives, Author Doesn’t Know How To Tag, Ben POV, Engagement and Marriage, F/M, Good boi Ben Solo, Now a full-blown fix it fic, Originally intended to be a one-shot then we hit 10000 words, Post-Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Rey POV, Rey actually gets to know Ben Solo in this one, Reylo Baby Fic, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Fix-It, Unplanned Pregnancy, We are going to Naboo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:33:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23933107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galactic_Enantiomers/pseuds/Galactic_Enantiomers
Summary: After the Battle of Exegol, Rey and Ben journey to Naboo to start a new life together.When they learn that Rey is pregnant, they both must face their doubts over becoming parents as well as the scars and sins from their pasts.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 11
Kudos: 26
Collections: Anniversary Fic Exchange 2020





	Little Boy Blue and the Man in the Moon

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ElleRen31](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElleRen31/gifts).



> I hope this brings you some joy in these harsh times :)

Darkness. 

All Rey remembers is darkness and a voice.

Too faraway to identify at first, but the seraphic lullaby had gradually drifted closer. Within a few seconds (or was it hours? There was no way of knowing how much time had passed in this blank space), the soft pleas were being delivered right into her ear. She could then make out the desperate words they contained.

“Come back.” 

She knew it was an offer: a hand extending to her through the black to guide her along along a path to the other plane. And yet, she shied away from it.  
Fresh memories from another life floated through her mind as she began to shake her head. Why would she go back? He was gone, his body broken and bleeding at the bottom of some pit. If she returned, she would have to live out the remainder of her days with half of her soul missing, torn away from her. No, might as well stay in this emptiness.

“Come back to me,” the voice begged.

Refusing the call once more, she crumpled deeper into her self. Self-doubt reemerged despite all that she had learned. She was a fraud. Only a scavenger with tainted blood pumping through her veins who wielded a borrowed lightsaber. Would her friends look on her in disgust when they heard the truth about her lineage? Turn on her as those who loved Ben once had? The look of revulsion she pictured on Finn’s face was enough to reject the prospect. 

The dulcet rumble was only a whisper now. “Come back to me, sweetheart.” The endearment sparks a recognition deep inside her.

____

____

She finally reaches back. The darkness is sucked away from her into a distant vacuum to be replaced by a blue haze that slowly clears. 

Bright amber eyes stare down at her. 

_Ben. ___

____

____

Lifting herself up to get a clearer view, she doesn’t yet allow herself believe that he is really here, cradling her. That the feel of his fingertips on her nape and the hand under hers is anything more than a wistful fantasy brought on by fatigue. 

She had seen the fall, had felt his light diminish to a meek flicker. On that cold floor, her heart had cried out for its dying twin in the ravine below her. When it didn’t receive any reply, it had cracked apart. Surprisingly, there hadn’t been pain: simply a numbness that rapidly spread through her whole being. 

The Jedi were able to break through the gathering haze long enough to remind her that she still had a duty to fulfill. Her friends were still in danger. Rolling onto her back, she gazed up at the fiery explosions from the war that raged on hundreds of klicks above her. The thought of her friends in one of those ill-fated ships gave her the strength to push herself off the ground and face the menace one final time. She defeated Palpatine with his mother’s and his uncle’s weapons as lightning burned through her veins. Before she allowed herself to be engulfed by the awaiting abyss, she sent up a silent prayer that her friends would survive the battle. And another that wherever she was headed, Ben would be waiting there for her. Then she embraced the dark. 

Now, in his arms, she decides she doesn’t care if this is the afterlife, a dreamscape, or an impossible reality. Her wish has been answered. 

“You’re here,” she breathes. 

And for the first time since she’s known him, Ben Solo smiles. It’s small, barely a crinkle on both sides of his lips, but it’s an unimaginable gift nonetheless.

As she reaches up to caress his cheek, she becomes aware of his signature lighting up the force around them, twining with hers. In the distance, she can sense Finn’s , Poe’s, and Rose’s as well. Which meant that… She takes in a sharp breath as it hits her. They are both alive; somehow Ben had brought her back and this was happening here and now. His gaze flits back and forth across hers as if he too is stunned and disbelieving of all of this. That in this indescribable moment, they are together at last. Alight with joy, she leans forward and kisses him. And their souls sing.

The whole galaxy is here between her hands and on her lips. It’s as if something falls into place that had been waiting around a millennium to be reforged. She had first sensed it in the Hut when they touched, but as he deepens the kiss, she can feel it as a tangible string that connects her very being to his. The Bond was only a precursor to this tie, this unprecedented closeness.

Needing air, she finally pulls away and regards him. He looks a little thrown off-guard and for a moment, anxiety shoots through her. Had she been too presumptuous? But then he gives her the giddiest beam she has ever seen and all of her doubts are erased. She can’t help but grin back. 

But his smile suddenly fades into a grimace. “What is it?” Rey is about to ask before she feels the bulk of his weight against her arm. Confused and steadily growing alarmed, she lowers him down gently as he falls back. His face is serene as his head reaches the floor, but he is completely still. No rise and fall of his chest, no steady beat of his heart, no warmth from the hand clutched tightly in hers. Just stillness and silence.

A cry pierces the air of the lifeless chamber. Rey sinks down, clinging to his shirt and releases her anguish in choked sobs. Everything had been ripped away from her again. The Force, the Jedi, Fate, it could all burn if they thought it just to deprive her of her other the minute they were united. She wants to lash out and scream, end whoever or whatever is responsible, but she can’t even sense the culprits. She senses nothing, which is even worse. Even the Force is quiet. For the second time in her life, Rey is abandoned.

In another corner of the galaxy, a mother gives everything she has to her child in a final act of love.

Rey is too far gone to notice when his foot twitches. Or when his brow furrows. Or even when his hand squeezes back. No, once again, it’s his voice that pulls her out from the darkness.

“Rey.”

**************

When they arrive on Ajan Kloss, Rey isn’t the least surprised at the cold reception that greets them. She had known what to expect when she had shot down Ben’s idea of “kriffing it all” and flying off to some planet in the Unknown Regions for a fresh start. With that in mind, she reminds herself that she can’t be a coward and run now despite the sheer animosity she feels pulsing in the surrounding Force. 

After seemingly years of walking past a variety of sneers and snarls, she spots Chewie rising above the crowd and trails downward to see Finn and Poe standing beside him. Poe is the first to notice them and is obviously baffled by the sight he sees before him: the Supreme Leader of the First Order, armor-free, hobbling on one leg with the Last Jedi supporting his weight. Finn, on the other hand, skips right to glaring daggers at Ben like the others. The look he is donning is so unlike him and hostile that Rey halts in her tracks briefly, beginning to second-guess her decision to come. What will happen if Finn and Poe won’t even let her speak and move to arrest him before she can get a word in? What if Finn concludes that her affinity with Ben is deplorable and chooses to end their friendship? And Rose and the others follow suit? 

The twisted thing is that she would understand. She could never hope to blot out the stain of Kylo Ren’s actions. Without her connection with Ben, there was no way for them to know how much he had suffered and been manipulated, molded into a weapon since he was a child. And that’s why none of what is to come is going to be easy. 

Probably sensing her tension in the Force, Ben squeezes the arm he has wrapped around her shoulders and sends a comforting wisp through the Bond. She can tell he’s as nervous as she is, but she is grateful for the reassurance all the same. Bracing herself, Rey releases the breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding in and recommences their trek toward her friends. 

By the time they reach the trio, Poe has adopted a similar stance to Finn. 

“What are you doing, Rey?” Finn asks stiffly. 

Rey could feel every emotion he was experiencing. Rage toward Ben. Relief at seeing her alive. Utter confusion on why in the name of the Force she was by his side. But worst of all, under all of that, was overwhelming hurt. 

Rey had prepared for this, but it didn’t make it any less unbearable. She hopes that one day, he can forgive her. 

“Ben saved my life on Exegol,” she states baldly. Getting straight to the point seemed to be their best option right now. 

Poe’s expression remains grim, but Finn’s eyes widen slightly. For the first time, he glances up at Ben, but when he meets his gaze, quickly focuses back on Rey. 

“He killed the Emperor after I was overpowered. Without him, the Leader of the Sith and his followers would still be out there bending the galaxy to their will and my corpse would be growing cold on the floor of their temple.” Perhaps a tad dramatic, especially that bit on the end, but definitely was having the desired effect on the others. Including Ben. They hadn’t discussed this on the flight back and he obviously is not thrilled with her giving him the credit. Hopefully Poe and Finn will attribute his surprised reaction to her graphic statement. 

The hard line of Poe’s mouth has softened fractionally and he quirks a brow at Ben. “You defeated the Emperor?” 

Ben snaps his head up to Poe and Rey has to keep herself from smiling at the mini internal argument he has with himself before he is able to answer, “Yes.”

Who would’ve thought that a man who was the Supreme Leader would have such a miserable time lying. If they ever make it out of here, she was going to have some fun.

Poe, meanwhile, remains unconvinced at the confirmation. Ben is a terrible liar, but she prays hers was strong enough to sway him. 

“Why?” Poe presses. “I’m trying to understand why a man who joined his forces with the Emperor’s less than a week ago suddenly decides to switch sides.”  
Rey is about to answer when Ben beats her to it, no longer leaning against her shoulder.

“Because thrones and power turn to ash when the women you love are taken from you.” His voice holds a conviction that allows no doubt as to the sincerity of his words.

Now it’s Rey’s turn to gawk at him. Finn and even Chewie mirror her expression, but all Poe does is chuckle.

“You always were a poet, Solo.” He remarks with a smirk. 

Ben doesn’t reply. His focus is locked on her and her alone with a gentle smile lighting his face.

_I do love you. _He reaffirms through the Bond as warmth floods through her. _And I will continue to love you when there are no longer any stars in the nightsky or any galaxy to contain them. You are all that I am. _ ______

_____ _

_____ _

Her vision begins to blur as she attempts to hold back the tears that are gathering under her eyes. 

“You really are a poet,” she whispers to him.

She realizes she spoke it aloud when Poe starts laughing. And that breaks whatever bubble Ben’s devotion had put them in. 

Rey quickly wipes her eyes and silently swears that if anyone so much as touches the man at her side, there will be hell to pay. Even more so than before if that’s possible.

Poe soon becomes somber again and appears much more conflicted. Everyone remains quiet for a few moments as he considers how to proceed. Finn seems lost on what to do as well.

Finally, Poe opens his mouth to speak, but before he can share his verdict, Chewie pushes past him to stand before Ben. Towering above him, Chewie looks the opposite of happy to see his former godson in the flesh again.

Uncle and nephew regard one another in a tense reunion. Rey soon grows uncomfortable at her intrusion in this charged moment, but she is reluctant to leave Ben while he is still using her for support. 

_“Princess is gone,” _Chewie growls lowly.__

____

____

“I know she is,” Ben answers with a slight hitch in his throat. She knows this is the second to last thing he wants to discuss, what he did to his father being the first. 

Deflating, Chewie’s shoulders slump in renewed grief. Regret shoots through her that she wasn’t here to console him when he learned of Leia’s passing, choosing to selfishly run off to Ach-To instead. She can’t imagine the despair he must have felt.

_“Princess wanted cub to come back,” _he mewls.__

____

____

“I know,” Ben manages to get out. His signature is a live wire next to Rey.  
The base around them has gone silent as the rebels listen in with rapt attention. 

Chewie takes another step forward and everyone holds their breath. And then he leans down and hugs Ben. 

Now Rey’s tears fall freely as she watches the inconceivable act of forgiveness and acceptance unfold.

Inside the embrace, Ben is dumbstruck. His arms stay motionless at his side for several beats before they tentatively reach up to return the hug. Soon after, his head presses into the fur as he finally allows himself to release everything that had been building since his mom sacrificed herself for him or maybe even since his father did. Wet sobs are heard by all who are near enough, coming from the boy who had returned home at last but not destined to be welcomed by the mother he hadn’t seen in two decades. 

No one dares interrupt them. But one-by-one or in small groups, rebels give up the make their way over and gather around the duo to observe the scene until most of the Alliance is in the circle. 

Noticing the impact this is having on Rey, Rose weaves through the crowd to stand by her friend and put her arms around her. Clinging to her, Rey feels a great weight that she didn’t know she had been carrying for so long fall away. Deep down, she had believed that when she left the base a week ago that she would never see Rose again and had come far too close to being right. Being near her again alongside Finn was what she had been missing from feeling entirely at peace after everything that had transpired. 

Together, they watch as Ben Solo is reintroduced to the world.

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to split the first chapter in two as the tones of the first and second halves didn’t mesh well together. I have the second part mostly written though and will be posting it soon! It goes past the film’s timeline and I’m excited to share it!


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